“Young Madam, Madam is resting in this room.” The gatekeeper matron accompanied Xu Fang into the main hall and said in a low voice.

Xu Fang nodded slightly and instructed the maidservant at her side, “Hong Yue, keep the matron company and chat with her. The matron must be quite bored alone.”

The gatekeeper matron was more than happy to have someone to chat with, yet couldn’t feel at ease about the person inside the room.

“Young Madam, Madam—” The gatekeeper matron pointed at her head. “She’s become somewhat confused. You’d best not go in alone.”

Xu Fang smiled slightly. “No matter. I’m just here to look at her. I don’t plan to do anything, so I won’t provoke her anger.”

The gatekeeper matron was about to persuade further when Hong Yue pressed another piece of silver into her hand, and she immediately shut her mouth.

The young madam had married into the General’s estate—good days stretched ahead of her. She certainly wouldn’t be foolish enough to provoke a madwoman.

Xu Fang lifted the door curtain and walked inside.

The light in the room was dim. Yellowed window paper blocked out the bright autumn sunlight. Yang Shi sat quietly before an old dressing table, having sat there for who knows how long.

The instant she saw Yang Shi, Xu Fang froze.

In her memory, Yang Shi was gentle and refined, appearing much younger than her peers. She had never looked so disheveled before.

After the momentary shock came satisfaction.

Yang Shi had her day too.

Yang Shi, hearing the movement, turned her head and stared at Xu Fang without reacting.

That gaze was unblinking. If it had been someone else, they would surely feel afraid.

But Xu Fang wasn’t afraid.

Yang Shi’s current state relied on Miss Luo’s help. If she was still afraid now, she would be too worthless.

Her affairs, in the end, still depended on herself.

Xu Fang walked toward Yang Shi step by step, her pace firm.

Yang Shi stared directly at the approaching person and finally uttered a word: “You—”

Her voice sounded like an old woman’s—hoarse and unpleasant.

Xu Fang smiled. “Today is my return visit day. I came to see you.”

“Return visit?” Yang Shi rolled her eyeballs, her expression changing, asking with disbelief, “You got married?”

Xu Fang smiled sweetly. “I’m this grown up—of course I’d get married. Didn’t anyone tell you?”

Seeing Yang Shi had no reaction, Xu Fang continued, “I married into the Xu family of the General’s estate. You should have heard of the Xu family, right?”

Yang Shi’s eyes flickered, and her already sluggish brain began to turn.

The Xu family… the Xu family was excellent.

Xu Fang actually married into the Xu family of the General’s estate?

“You’re lying to me!” Yang Shi shouted.

This loss of composure was something Xu Fang had never witnessed before.

Xu Fang curved her lips in a smile. “Who would lie about getting married? If you don’t believe me, just ask around and you’ll know. Hehe, you didn’t even know I got married—I suppose you’re even less aware that the Crown Prince has already been deposed?”

“What?” Yang Shi sprang to her feet. “What do you mean the Crown Prince was deposed?”

Her already numb thoughts couldn’t immediately sort out what impact the Crown Prince’s deposition had on her, yet instinctively she knew it wasn’t good news.

No—it was tremendously bad news.

Xu Fang thoughtfully helped Yang Shi sort it out. “The deposed Crown Prince was originally the heir of Prince Pingnan. His Majesty deposed the Crown Prince, so it shouldn’t be long before Prince Pingnan’s estate meets with disaster… Oh right, you should still remember the reason Prince Pingnan’s estate rose to prominence, don’t you?”

Staring at Yang Shi’s deathly pale face, Xu Fang smiled. “It was by exposing my maternal grandfather’s Zhengnan Prince’s estate that there came to be the Prince Pingnan’s estate enjoying flowers and brocade later. That’s why my mother, Princess Huayang, lost her life, allowing you to take the position of Marchioness of Changchun. A dependent relative who was staying under someone else’s roof ultimately transformed into the female master of a marquis’s estate—there couldn’t be another woman in the world luckier than you. However, I’ve heard that people’s luck has its limits. It’s that way for you, and it’s that way for Prince Pingnan’s estate too. Guess when Prince Pingnan’s estate comes crashing down—won’t that be when my maternal grandfather’s Zhengnan Prince’s estate is vindicated of injustice?”

Yang Shi’s lips kept trembling. Under Xu Fang’s smiling questions, she couldn’t utter a single word.

Xu Fang had no intention of letting Yang Shi off this easily.

This was an opportunity she had waited far too long for, with Miss Luo’s help.

She wanted to press one more straw onto this woman who was already on the edge of collapse, to drive this woman completely mad, to shake loose the heinous crimes this pair of adulterous man and woman committed thirteen years ago, and avenge her mother.

Xu Fang’s eyes were resolute as she delivered the final blow. “As for my father—you know what kind of person he is. My mother’s birth was so noble, yet once she threatened his interests he could unhesitatingly strike her down. Afterward, he showed not a trace of mercy toward me and my eldest brother, a pair of legitimate children. To say he let us fend for ourselves would be generous—clearly he wished we would die quietly without notice, sparing him the trouble.”

Speaking to this point, Xu Fang took half a step forward and said coldly, “Stepmother, tell me—when Zhengnan Prince’s estate is vindicated, how will Father treat Second Brother and the others?”

“Ahhh—” Yang Shi let out a piercing scream and lunged at Xu Fang.

Xu Fang, who had prepared for this, nimbly dodged to the side and quickly retreated outside.

Yang Shi chased after her, appearing crazed.

The gatekeeper matron hurried forward to block her. “Madam, you cannot harm Young Madam—even the Marquis would have no way to account to the General’s estate…”

“Let me go, let me go!” Yang Shi struggled desperately.

When people go mad, their strength increases. Fortunately, the gatekeeper matron the Marquis of Changchun selected was broad-shouldered and thick-waisted with considerable strength. She held Yang Shi’s waist tightly, preventing her from breaking free.

Meanwhile, Xu Fang quickly departed with Hong Yue.

Not seeing Xu Fang’s figure anymore, Yang Shi slowly calmed down and was pushed back into the room by the gatekeeper matron.

With a bang, the door closed. The gatekeeper matron stroked her chest and let out a breath of foul air.

This woman was truly going more and more insane.

The young lady was really something too—why provoke her for no reason?

The gatekeeper matron thought it over and then understood.

The young lady had been tormented by her stepmother for so many years. Now that she’d finally raised her head in pride, coming to show off a bit was only human nature.

Xu Fang’s visit, thanks to the gatekeeper matron’s discretion, passed like wind without a trace. But for Yang Shi, it was different.

She began frequently inquiring with the gatekeeper matron about affairs outside, like a bird startled by the twang of a bow, unable to sleep soundly night after night.

Insomnia made her increasingly haggard. Her entire person was like a tightly wound string, ready to snap at any moment.

On this day, Sister-in-law Xi came to the door again.

Yang Shi quietly walked over to eavesdrop on Sister-in-law Xi and the gatekeeper matron talking.

“Sister-in-law Xi, why does your complexion look off?”

“It’s nothing. Quickly put away this month’s payment. I’m going back.”

The gatekeeper matron looked at the money handed over and felt even more wrong. “Why is it only this much?”

Less money—wasn’t this taking her life!

“Sister-in-law Xi, what exactly happened? We’ve been on good terms—you can’t leave me in the dark alone.”

Guarding this madwoman by herself, she was about to go deaf.

Sister-in-law Xi was silent for a moment, then sighed. “The Marquis’s estate is probably going to have trouble again.”

“What trouble?”

“Young Madam obtained from Miss Luo the dowry list from when Princess Huayang married into the Marquis’s estate. It’s said to have been obtained by Grand Commander Luo when he confiscated Zhengnan Prince’s estate back then… This doesn’t match what the Marquis provided—how could Young Madam not raise a fuss?”